Originally posted by Cruzmama
We are sailing on our first Hawaiian cruise on the Grand. Other than seeing Pearl Harbor, we're not sure which excursions are the best. We like volcanoes, waterfalls, lava tubes, snorkeling. Which excursions are not to be missed? Should we consider booking through someone other than Princess?

Here are my suggestions from the Holland America, Veendam, Circle Hawaii cruise in early January.

Maui

If your port call is in Lahaina, go whale watching with Pacific Whale Foundation http://www.pacificwhale.org and book online yourself. You don’t need a tour. The Pacific Whale Foundation booth is just as you exit the tender.

Kauai

Rent a car and drive to the Waimea Canyon and Na Pali Coast Overlook. There is plenty of time to do this and maybe stop by the Kauai Coffee Plantation. You pick the car up at the Lihue Airport, but the rental car companies offer free shuttle bus service between the pier and the airport. The cars are cheap and this is a great day.

If you’re interested in a tour of Pearl Harbor, a ships tour is not necessary to visit the Arizona Memorial. We made reservations for the FREE tickets online through the government recreation website http://www.recreation.gov/unifSearchResults.do?topTabIndex=Search. There is a small fee of $1.50 per person for reserving tickets online. Tickets might be available on a walkup basis at the memorial on the day of your visit.

You can take a taxi or there are two city buses (#20 and #42) that operate from the pier area to the Arizona Memorial parking lot http://thebus.org/Route/Routes.asp. Exit the ship and head to Ala Moana Blvd. Cross the street, turn right, and walk to the corner of Ala Moana Blvd and South Street. You will see the stop for bus #20 (Waikiki – Pearl Ridge) near the corner after you cross South Street. This bus takes about 50 minutes to get to the memorial. For bus #42, continue walking down South Street to Avahi Street. This bus makes fewer stops.

To return to the ship exit the parking lot and walk to Kamehameha Street and turn left to the bus stop. Both buses will take you back to the pier or you can continue on the Waikiki Beach for the remained of the afternoon and return to the pier by bus.

Hilo

We opted for the ships tour that offered small group tours to Volcanoes National Park for a five-mile hike of Kilauea Iki volcano crater. This was a great tour.

Kona

We opted to just walk around Kona for a few hours. Things to see include: Huliheʻe Palace/Museum and Mokuaikaua Church, both dating back to the early 1800's, less than a block from the end of the pier; Farmers Market, about 4 blocks from the pier; have a MaiTai at the Royal Kona Resort - a great spot to take pictures of your ship in the bay while sipping a delicious drinks; and there is a small beach as you exit the tender.